Snow-plow for road-vehicles.



R: F. STEWART. snow mow FORHOAD VEHICIES. APPLICATION FILED MAR. l. 1916.

1111011161 Feb. 13,1917.

2 iHEETSSHEET l- ATTORNEYS R. F. STEWART.

SNOW PLOW FOR ROAD'VEHICLES. APPLICATION FILED MAR. 1, I916.

1,21 5,587. Patented Feb. 13, 1917.

2 susns-si+an 2.

ATTORNE rs w/msss INVENTOR I M F v RICHARD F. STEWART, OF'BBILBCLIFE'NEW YORK.

SNOW-PLOW reasonvenom Specification of Letters Patent. Patented 'eb. 13, 1917.

Application meaimn 1, 1910'. serial No. 81,808.

To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, RICHARD -F. STEWART, a citizen of the United. States, residing at- Briarclifi', in the State of New York, have invented certain. new and useful Improvements in Snow-Flows for Road-Vehicles, of which the following is a specification, refv erence being bad to the accompanying drawings, forming a part hereof This invention relates to, snow'plows for road vehicles and is designed, and will be described herein, with-particular reference to its embodiment in motor vehicles. The

invention has for its general objects to provide a plow which shall' be siJnple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, readily adjustable for meeting difl'e'rent conditions of use, and readily applicable to motor vehicles of standard construction by an unskilled 0 )erator without the .use of'special tools. The invention further contemplates the provision of a plow especially adaptable, for theuses indicated, which shall I be of such chani' acter and so constructed and arranged'with respect to the vehicle, as to be free from objections which might be raised against plows constructed and arran d in ways other than those included within the scope of this invention. Sporadic attempts have been made to devise a plow which might be effective for use on a motor vehicle, but such attempts, so far asknown, have been confined to the rigid mounting of a plow in front of. the front wheels or the attachment of a plow either rigidly, or as a drag, to the rear of the car. Neither of these constructions is satisfactory for 'thereason that a plow at the. front of the car can not be adjusted so as to remove snow from the roadway with that degree of nicety which is required for successful um owingto the irregula'lrities in the road surface and the evident impracticability of permitting the plow to rest in contact with such surface, and a plow mounted in therear in the manner suggested either fails for the same reason or becomes practically inntile by reason of its failure to move the snow from the roadway in front of, the tractlon wheels;

Other objections to such proposed constructions are 'the failure of the plows to track properly. thereby subjflzting them to constant liability to injury through engagement.

with obstructions at the roadside; the unbalanced thrust exerted on one end or the other of the chassis by the pressure of thesnow, and the costliness and elaborateness of .such plows, thereby rendering. them fit for service only on vehicles provided therefor and driven by skilled op craters. In accordance with the present i1 iventio'n all the principal objections to know nconstructions,

as noted above, are eliminati 1d by important changes in the construction, disposition and 7 mode of use of the improved plow. In the first lace, the plow is disposed under the chassis of the vehicle between the trout and rear wheels and permitted to rest under its own, weight on the road surface so that the snow isremoved'right down to-the road surface "in front of the tractiojl Wheels. Forther, the improved plow is l Ls osed at about that section of-the-car whic is inear the vertical axis about which it turns in changing direction so that the plow necessarily tracks at alltimes'both as r1 :gards the front wheels and the rear wheels and so has no tendency to leave its proper alinement with respect to the wheels and the road surface to be cleaned. Again, the improved plow is so disposed with respect to the wheels of the car and the IZEHSSL thereof that the thrust on the plow by the snow is ab sorbed by the chassis 'in the most effective mannerand the tendency to skid eliminated to the greatest possibledegree. Another feature of importance is the provision of a plowwhich shall, by reason of its construction, be readily convertible, so that the snow may be removed from the roadway at such portions thereof as may be lesired, or most convenient,.acco1'ding to corditions. In' the illustrated embodiment of the invention, there has been shown a plc w in which the blade sections may be so disposed as to effect the clearingof the roa l in front of the traction wheels only. may be so combined as to caux the entire tread surface of the vehicle to be cleared by pressing the snow to opposite sides of the vehicle by reason of the opposite inclinations o? the blades, or may, by a third relative d sposition, beso disposed to one another as t form a continuousblade extending from one side of the chassisto the other and inclined in on'edirection only so as to sweep the snow to one side of the car only, In ea Ill of, the dispositions-described, the strains imposed by the pressure of the snow are adequately absorbed andreduced to a minimum uefore transmis Illl sion to thechassis, by a novel frame stru'w frame is of simple construction. consisting only 'of a few inter-connected sections of angle piecessecured at their front ends to the front axle whereby the frame with the plows is dragged and the plows rest on the' road surface under their own weight and the weight of the frame and are connected at their rear ends to the rear axle of the vehicle through crossed flexible cables whereby 'all lateral pressures on the plows and frame are absorbed 'yieldingly and the thrust on the chassis neutralized to the greatest extent possible. A further feature of the invention resides in the provision of adjustable devices for pressing the edge of the plow into yielding engagement with the road surface, such devices taking the form in the illustrated embodiment, of a manually operable lever connected operatively to the frame of the plow through a spring,

the tension of. which is determined by the lever. means whereby the plow may be raised entirely from the road surface as may he often desirable when thesurfaceis cleared or when the, car is to be backed. These and other objects of the invention will appear at greaterlength hereinafter in connection with a detailed description of the accompanying drawings, in Which- Figure .1 is a somewhat conventional view in plan of so much of an automobile and its chassis as'need be shown for an understanding of the application thereto of the improved plow.

Fig. 2 is a view. inside elevation of thecar shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing the sections of the improved plow disposed in different relationship to one an other for the purpose of effecting the clearing of the roadsurface in a somewhat difas at (1 to the front axle a. while the rear ferent manner.

Fig. 4 are detail views of sections of the improved plow. I

As this description proceeds it will be evident "that the improved plow is not to be limited-in its application to road vehicles of any particularconstruction and that'the section of the automobile shown in the appended drawings is merely by way of illustration of one particular use of the plow in connection with a pleasure car of common form.- In' this car, the front wheels (1 are carried, as usual, on stub axles a, pivoted,

wheels 7) may find. their bearings on the rear axle which is disposed, as usual, in the casing. indicated conventionally at b. The traction wheels I) receive power through the differential disposed within the housing in the manner well known. On the axles a and b are carried the usual springs 11* and b for the support of the chassis c. V The frame of the improved plow com- Included with these devices are as through convenient clamping means, in-

.dicated generally as U-bolts d as will be evident. These parallel frame pieces d extend rearwardly beneath the chassis c and have secured .adjacent their rear ends a transversely extending channel piece (1 which isof a'length at least equal to the tread of the wheels b, for reasons which will hereinafter? appear. The transverse frame memberd may be secured conveniently to the side frame bars (I by suitable bolts, indicated at (1 At the rear ends of the side frame bars d are drilled holes to receivelinks e to which are connected adjustable straps f, respectively, to the ends of which, in turn. are secured suitable cables 5 the ends of which are attached to the casing bfof the rear axle, as through adjustable clamps g.

-The improved convertible plows are madeup preferably of two blade sections, such as are shown in Fig. 4, and these blade sections will be so mounted on the frame as to be shiftable with relation to one another, or when required, singly detachable, in order to bring about any desired clearing action, although it should be noted here that certain features of'the-invention will be found equally advantageous without the use of the particular blades now to be described.

The shorter blade section it, shown in Fig.

. 4, is preferably'curved at both its lower and upper edges, as indicated at h and k respectively, so as to effect a cutting action of the snow close to the road surface and throw thesnow out to one side of the blade and prevent it from being scattered over the car body and the cleared road surface. A blade section, such as is indicated at h,'is mounted in front of each of the traction wheels 6 by means of bolts (l and d passing through the respective side frame mcmlu-rs/l and the transversely extending frame member d whereby the short blade sectionsare placed in inclined positions and in such relation to V the traction" wheelsas to clear effectively a track way therefor and permit the car to be driven forward without hindrance. ,Each. of the sections 7:. is preferably braced at the rear of its lower cutting edge by means of a strut i bolted to its rear side near its lower edge and engaged with the bolt (i of the frame pieces d, heretofore referred to. This inclined strut i maintains the blades h in their intended positions against the pressures exerted thereon and. where these short blade sections are slightly dished, as will oftentimes be desirable. these struts prevent the lower cutting edge from being forced rearwardly. The two blade sections h',described, will oftentimes satisfy a need of the motorist for plows which will clear paths for the. 1 0

i of bolts ls.

traction wheels and permit the car to be run.

without hindrance-over roads on which snow is newly fallen. Under thesecircumstances, the. motorist does not desire to clean the road surface, as such, but merely to guard him self against'the danger andannoyance of stalling.

'here'it is desired to use the vehicle for clearing at least so much oftlie road surface as thetread of the car spans, the driver may attach the short blade sections It: to the fixed sections 11.. as through bolts It, provided for the purpose aml these o 'ipositely inclined sections K may be secured together along their front abutting'edges by means As shown in Fig. "l. the front vertical edges of these plow sections it may be llangcd. as at k. so as to afford firm con.- tacting surfaces intended tobe maintained in snug engagement by securing bolts 'hen the in'iproved convertible plow has its blade sections sodisposed as to form the oppositely tapered clearing faces shown in Fig.

1.the snow i ithe road will be forced to opposite sides of thecar and thrown clear of it by the curvatures of the small sections it. 'l lllSftHl'l'l ofplow will be useful in clearing the streets of municipalities. and especially so where only a single track way need-he opened. Since the short sections It project beyond the side faces of the traction wheels it \\'Ill be evident that the plow shown in Fig. 1 clears a road surface of greaterwidth i than the tread of the vehicle.

In Fig. 3, the improved plow has had its sections mounted in still'other relations to one another. Here. one of the inclined sections l'is secured to its shorter fixed section 1'v through bolts which pass through the bolt holes 11. adjacent the inner edge of the secthat l: aml bolt holes adjacent the outer edge of the section Z'. By this disposition, the blade I is caused to-span the frame membcrs r/ and is secured to the opposite frame member by-passing one of the bolts lu through the vertical llaiige if" which is now placed iii engagement .with the side of the angle piece 1/. As shown in Fig. Fl. the other inclined plow section b has its front vertical 'cdgc secured to the extended-blade h ad jacent its mid-section. by means of suitably curved bolts/tr" passing through the vertical flange lc on the front edge ofsaid in- .clined section I. aiid through bolt holes Z1" in the extended blade section. It should be ren'iarked tl-iat-when the blade sections 7.: are

" in the sectit-m's l and Ii, respectively, receive the bolts Z".

The disposition of sections shown in Fig. 3 is especially useful where,

int-leaning the road surface it is desired that.

the snmvbe thrown'out at, one side of the car only so that, when a wider track 1S to be cleared, it will not benecessary to remove any snow theretofore shifted. Again, as it is quite evident that eithei one of the blades k may be extendedin tho manner just described. so as tocause the snow to be forced to either the right side of the carer tothe left side. by making two "(rips with-the car over the same road and changing the rela tive disposition of the blades. a road surface of a width double that oi the tread of the cat-may be readily cleared withoutany dllh culty. The advantage of this is particifilarly great when. as is often ';he case. the Silt-.

face to'be cleared is found on a hill sidt-.;;s

that it is impracticable to run the car for the cl-armg operation in but one direction. From the description given it'will be evident that no matter what ;he relative dispoways rests on the surface of the road under its own weight and is dragged .aloi'ig the -road by the parallel frame members (I which? are loosely connected at t'ieir fronteluls to'x the front axle u. So far aspossible, then, the pull on the plow for the removal of the snow is exerted thereon i1 .directionspa'ir allel' to the impellingdirection o.f the traction wheels. \\'hen only the two short-sec:

tions it. are eni iloyed. or when the two 1011 .2? inclined sections A are. usul t n substantially the relation to each other shown in Fig. 1, c

.the pressure of the snow on the oppositely on the frame-members 1/ or the, chassis of the vehicle. Accordingly. no tendency. for the car to skid is found. And thiseis true in the present construction. even though the vehicle be changingdirect ion. ltis in'ipor tant that the plow shoull be mounted between the front and rear wheels and underf case were the plow disposed llljltltztllt't of.

tltefront wheels or to th* rear of the rear wheels. There only on conditioirof op'- cration under which latcial strains willbe imposed on the carrying trame of the plow sections, and that is when me of the sections It is extended. as shown in Fig. ,3. to form a ('OI'ltll'tllUllS inclined plou fromside, to side of the chassis. In this ca c the bulk of the: snow willbe thrust to'thright of the car so that its reaction onth: inclined surface .of the blade willtend to thrust .the imam 7 members (I and the; chassis tothe left. This tendency is counteracted to the greatest dea on the ends of which are pivotedvertically andprevent the car from skidding.

gree possible, bythe improved construction,

by connecting the rear ends of the frame members (I by: the'crossed flexible cables g to the rearaxle 7;, so-that all such strains will be absorbed equally through the front and rear axles and the entire mass of the carwill uniformly resist these lateral strains \Vith the plow disposed to the front or rear of the car, the thrust of the snow would be given a leverage by which the chassis might be readily turned aside. In the improved con struction. no such leverage is afforded andthe frictional engagement of the four wheels with the road surface is brought to bear uniformly on the-plow to the end that the thrust thereon by the snow may be successfully met and the car he held to its course. It should be noted that the straps f as well as the clamps give an adjustment of the cables 1 whereby that degree of lateral play:

which is always desirable may be readily provided no matter .what the wheel based the )articular car to which the plow is applied.

'hile it has been stated herein that. the improved plow is-formed as a drag and is adapted to rest on the surface of the road under its own weight so as to scrape the road surface clear and adapt itself automatically to irregularities, a feature of importance resides in the provision of yielding devices for bringing pressure to bear on the frame so as to force the scraping edge of the.

plow intoengagement with the road surface under an adjustable pressure, the extent of which may be regulated according to conditions. Various devices. for accomplishing this end may be employed as will be evident to one skilled in the art, but a convenient control is shown in the accompanying drawings. There is provided a transversely extending rock shaft 7 journaled in removable bearings m. which may conveniently be attached to the underside of the running boards n of the car. ()n the rock shaft is fixed a hand lever m which extendsup- 'wardly to a position within easy reach of the driver of the car, this hand lever m being arranged to move over the face of a notched quadrant 0 whereby the lever may be maintained releasably in any one of several positions. for a purpose-which will appear. On the rock shaft I are fixed arms m.

disposed studs m. adapted to extend through guide openings formed therefor in the rearwardly'extending frame members (I of'the plow. Operatively interposed between the frame members d .and the respective arms m are suitable springs p. the pressures of which tend always to force the scraping edge of the plow into firm engagement with the road surface. On the free ends ofthe guide studsm' are fixed nuts m whereby when the studs are raised a sufficient distance the nuts will engage the side frame members. d and,-upon continued movement of the studs m serve to lift the frame members with the plow upwardly anddisengage the scraping edge of the plow from the road surface, as will be desirable when the plow is'not to be used, or when the car is to be backed. From the description given, it will be evident that the operator may readily manipulate the hand lever m so as to adjust the degree of ten- $1011 of the/springs p and thereby bring about a greater or less yielding pressure on the I the parts described and rearrangements of the elements will suggest themselves to the skilled mechanic, but all such changes and rearrangements are to be deemed within the scope of this invention provided the advantages described are retained by the employment of means which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A- convertible snow plow for road vehicles having traction wheels comprising a frame and four blade sections, two of which are spaced from each other and are mounted on-the frame directly in front of the traction wheels, and the other two of which are attachable tothe first named blades and to each other at their free edges to forma continnousplow.

:2. A convertible snow plow for road vehicles having traction wheels comprising a frame and four blade sections, two of which are spaced from each other and are mounted in" oppositely inclined positions on the frame directly in front of the traction wheels. and the other two of which are attachable to the first named blades, respectively, and to each other, at their free edges to form a continuous plow under the vehicle having oppositely inclined symmetrical faces.

3. A convertible snow plow for road vehicles having traction wheels comprising a frame and four blade sections,- two of which are spaced from each other and are mounted inoppositely inclined positions on the frame directly in front of the traction wheels, and the other two of vhichare attachable to the first named blades, respectively, and to each other, atth'eir free edges to form. a continuous plow under the vehicle having oppositely inclined symmetrical faces, and

either of the last named sections being also attachable at its free edge to the opposite side 'ofthe frame to present a continuous -in-' clined' face extending from one side of th chassis to the other.

4. A convertible snow plow for road vehicles having traction wheels comprising a frame and four blade sections, two of which are spaced from each other and are mounted in oppositely inclined positions on the frame directly in front of the traction wheels. and V the other two of \rhiel'i are attachable to the first named blades, I'GSPGCUVBly, and to'each other, at; their free-edges to form a continuous plow under the veliicle having opv positely inclined symmetrical faces, and

either of the last nanud sections being also attachable at its free edge of the opposite side of the frame to ,pr sent a continuous inclined face extending 'i'l'Oll] one side of the 

